View from Valhalla

Category: Bedtime

  • One man’s mistress….

    The following short story takes place outside of the timeline, and quite possibly in an alternate universe, normally inhabited by Sebastian and his two loving bears. I also do not take the credit for the idea. A very similar story was presented to me, once upon a time. However, I hope you enjoy it…

    On the introduction of a knight to Sebastian’s court

    Sebastian looked down on the dork in the metal suit and gave a smokey chortle.

    “I demand that thou, foul lizard, doest quickly and forthwith deliver the princess, whom you hath most foully abducted, posthaste!”

    It was all Sebastian could do not to laugh outright. ‘Poor fool,’ he thought ruefully.

    Sebastian had indeed taken the girl in question. It was part of the role he played after all. A role that he had taken to with much relish.

    On how Sebastian became the abductor of, um… “maidens”

    Upon reaching the age of his full growth, Sebastian had left the forest he shared with Lady Bear and Lavender and flown through the vail of magic that surrounded his world.

    When he arrived in the world of men, he was more than a bit surprised to find that he was regarded with a large amount of fear. To this point Sebastian had never considered his formidable abilities to have been weapons, put the men he had ran into obviously felt differently.

    With no real option, other than to leave this new land, Sebastian decided to play the role he had been dealt. However, he would play it the way he chose. If he was expected to steal away young girls, he would. But, he would take the ones that he chose, for reasons of his own. And what he did with them would be of his choosing.

    The truth about saving princesses

    “And, if I decide not to?” queried the young dragon.

    “Well then, your death will be no fault of mine own, as I shall be forced to slay thee,” responded the knight in what Sebastian suspected he considered a brave manner.

    Sebastian was always a bit surprised when one of these bumpkins expressed the belief that they were adequately prepared to face him in mortal combat. He highly suspected that some poor old dragon had let a knight take him at the end of a long life, rather than to succumb to some horrible pending illness. He could see no other answer for the tales of successful assault of the lone knight on a member of his species.

    Indeed, soon after his arrival in this realm, he had been shot with a ballista, and shortly after that had taken a direct hit with a trebuchet. Neither had done more than surprise him. The concept of one of these idiots, wrapped in shiny steel, hurting him, let alone mortally, was more than laughable.

    However, as metal left a foul, well metallic, aftertaste in his mouth, he decided to try a slightly different tack with the knight. Besides, one knight’s untimely demise would most assuredly bring more.

    “Tell me,” continued Sebastian, “why do you wish to risk your life in rescuing this particular princess. I’m sure there must be other princesses out there needing rescuing that are in much less dire situations.”

    The knight looked a bit taken aback for a moment, but then steadfastly continued down path he had chosen to trod. “You have taken the Princess Miranda without provocation. You have bereft a kingdom of it’s princess. You are known to treat your victims most foully! Look, the princess is chained there at the mouth of your lair!” exclaimed the knight pointing.

    “Yes, yes,” agreed Sebastian. “All that you say is true. However, I know of at least three other princesses that are currently in need of rescuing, all in situations less dire to them and at less risk to you, why did you choose to come for Miranda?”

    Sebastian could easily see that the knight had come unprepared to defend his own actions and that, perhaps, had not even thought it completely through himself.

    As Sebastian sat there and waited, the knight’s thought process was painfully apparent. Confusion. Frustration. Contemplation. Decision.

    Finally he replied, “The Princess Miranda is a generous and benevolent ruler and much beloved by her people. They demand her return!”

    “Really.” The way Sebastian stretched out the word gave ample reason to believe he doubted the knight’s facts as stated.

    “You see,” continued Sebastian, “I always do a bit of research before I choose my din… ummm… vict… ummm… guests. Your Princess Miranda is hardly generous or benevolent, and she is far from being loved by her people. In fact, the shepherds in the kingdom universally pointed me in her direction if I would cease feeding off their livestock.”

    “Thats not true!” whined the princess, speaking up for the first time as she stamped her little slippered foot. Sebastian flicked his tale and a portion of the wall the size of a small pumpkin exploded.

    He looked at her, and with as much malice as was possible, (which considering his size, strength, teeth, claws and armoured hide, was considerable) hissed, “You have no voice in this discussion. Interrupt again at your own peril.”

    Sebastian turned his attention back to the knight, who was more than a little awed at this display of strength and speed. “So, where were we… ah yes, you were now going to tell me the real reason you have decided to risk life and limb for this female of your species.”

    The knight, a little paler than before, stammered a bit and lost a bit more of his courtly speech. “Well, you see, the princess is … well… umm… well LOOK at her! She is beautiful! Her hair is the color of spun gold, her lips are like ripe cherries, her complexion is clearer than new creme. And she has huge…” here he momentarily flushed and looked away from the princess. When he continued, he had obviously reconsidered what he had intended to say. “Yes, she has a quite a large dowry.”

    “Ah, now we’re getting somewhere,” thought the dragon. “So,” he stated, “you are here because you find the princess physically pleasing and rescuing her would put you on the path of financial gain. Does that sum it up?”

    The knight obviously had a bit of trouble deciphering what Sebastian had just said. Eventually, he got there though. “Well, um, yes, I guess that about raps it up,” he agreed.

    “Well then!” said Sebastian as he rose to his full height, “I might have a solution that will work for all parties concerned! Tell me, sir knight, have you ever encountered a female that you found as physically pleasing as Miranda here?”

    “Well, now that you mention it, yes, there is this tavern maid down the way a bit that has the most wondrous…,” again he reddened as he stammered to a halt.

    “Well then, all that you need is some physical remuneration and we should be able to come to an arrangement!” stated Sebastian as he reached into his lair. Presently he brought out two large bags of gold, a large chalice and some assorted jewels.

    “Well, now, with this you and your tavern maid should be able to make more than a pleasant start,” Sebastian said as he handed the lot to the knight.

    “Th.. thank you,” stammered the knight as he turned and headed towards his horse.

    “Hey now, wait…” whined the princess before another pumpkin sized hole appeared.

    As the knight road off there was a bright flash of light and a wave of heat. He looked back and saw Sebastian ripping into what appeared to be a haunch of mutton, but quite possibly might have been something else. As he kicked his horse into a trot, he was almost certain he heard a chortling voice say, “Well, one man’s mistress is another man’s, or dragon’s, morsel.”

    —

    ,

  • Nap well, sweet prince

    As you lay there, with your head on my tummy, I tell you “one moe time” the story of the three little pigs.

    Your blue eyes burn into mine and I cherish this moment. I wonder how long it will be until you are too old to use daddy’s tummy as a pillow and no longer want to be held and cradled.

    You stroke my arm as I stroke your golden head. You know exactly when to add “and then the wolf came!” even though you can barely keep your eyes open. You are fighting sleep, and yet you can’t keep it away.

    As I carry you into your bedroom, and gently lay you on your bed, my heart swells with love once more. My eyes shine with unshed moisture and I swallow back the lump in my throat.

    You are my pride. You are my joy. I hope you will never doubt how much your parents love you. You make every day a good day, and bring a new meaning and joy to my life.

    You are, indeed, my beautiful little prince.

    —

    , , ,

  • A Day at the Beach

    “What do you want to do today?” asked Lavender.

    “Well, I was thinking. What do you think about taking a trip to the beach? Sebastian has never been, and it would be nice to see and hear the waves again.” replied Lady Bear.

    “Oh, how wonderful! Lady, you always have the bestest ideas! Sebastian will love it! I think I’ll invite Cassie! She would love to go, I just know it!” exclaimed the little bear.

    So preparations began for the trip. Lady Bear worked on packing the clothing, towels and assorted other articles to keep them comfortable on the beach. Lavender gathered the picnic basket and prepared sandwiches. Then she ran up the river to the faerie meadow and invited Cassie along. An invitation Cassie gladly excepted. Sebastian was put in charge of gathering the umbrellas, shovels and buckets needed for playing in the sand.

    Soon, the preparations were complete and the small group was ready to depart. Lady Bear and Lavender were to ride on Sebastian’s back for the duration of the trip, while Cassy would fly along side. The little bears and the dryad worked vigorously to pack all the items on Sebastian’s large back while Sebastian fidgeted and mumbled about not knowing whether it was worse to be a beast of burden or public transportation. Truth be told, Sebastian was just impatient to get started. It wasn’t long, however, until everything was stowed and the bears were in there places.

    “Okay, now that everyone is strapped down, let’s get started!” said Sebastian enthusiastically. He turned his head into the wind and was preparing for a massive leap that would have provided the initial momentum to bring them airborne, when a large purple primate dropped out of the tree.

    “Oooo, oooo, ooo,” grunted Purple Monkey. “Where you goin? I was hopin you might be in da mood for some iceceeeeemmm!” he stated and held up a large bunch of bananas that were perfectly ripe.

    “I’m sorry, but we’re going to the beach today, and we don’t have time to make ice cream,” stated Lady Bear.

    The poor little ape’s face became abjectly downtrodden. His despair was written so plainly on his face, it would have been amusing to any but these kind souls. Rather than laugh, Lady Bear looked at her friend and adopted son in a questioning way. Both immediately gave a nod.

    “Perhaps, if you have nothing you’d rather do, you might like to join us?” asked Lady Bear hopefully. Purple Monkey was a bit uncouth, but he was a good friend and always hilarious to have around.

    The ape’s face mercurial face changed instantaneously from a mirror of despair to the personification of rapture. He started bouncing in place. “Wooo, ooo, ooo! Yes, Purple Monkey want to come. Purple Monkey loves the beach! Purple Monkey will be much good company for little bears and big dragooon!!” effervesced Purple Monkey as he scampered up on Sebastian’s back and grabbed hold of the panniers.

    Soon the intrepid little band was flying over the river and making good time to the coast. Cassie flew on ahead to find the perfect beach spot and search for pretty shells.

    In less time than one would think, Sebastian gently touched down on the beach. and lowered himself onto his stomach so his passengers could disembark. Soon the baskets and other sundry supplies were unloaded and the friends began enjoying themselves.

    Purple Monkey and Sebastian couldn’t resist hitting the surf. Cassie had collected a large pile of shells and Lavender was happily going through them with her. Lady Bear calmly set up one of the umbrellas and settled down with a book that had been calling to her for ages.

    Lady Bear kept a watch on her son and the purple primate as they drifted farther from shore, and she reflected that it was nice not to have to worry about Sebastian going out to far, because he could always fly back. As she read, she noticed that the two friends had almost reached the sandbar that paralleled the coast.

    As she turned back to her novel, she lost sight of them for a bit, and was thus surprised when Sebastian dropped Purple Monkey lightly beside her and then landed.

    “Wise Mother! We have discovered another beach goer! He is on the sandbar and seems to be a bit peculiar,” reported the young dragon.

    “What do you mean, ‘peculiar’?” asked Lady Bear.

    “Well, when we asked him his name, he just said, “I’m an iceberg,” and wouldn’t say anything else. Do you think maybe the sun has got to him? Gentle Mother always says to stay out of the sun you know,” replied Sebastian a bit breathlessly.

    “Well, let’s all go see!” said Lady Bear as they gathered up Lavender and Cassie and headed for the sandbar.

    Upon arriving, they met a young bear cub who had the most amazing royal blue fur. Lavender excitedly walked up to him and introduced the group.

    “Hi, I’m Lavender, and these are my friends Lady Bear, Cassie and Purple Monkey, and this is my son, Sebastian,” she proudly stated.

    The little cub looked at her, looked at the rest, then looked back at Lavender and stated, “I’m an iceberg.”

    Lavender was a little startled by the strange bear, so Lady Bear took over.

    “Well, even if you are an iceberg, iceberg is not your name. I’m sure you were raised to be polite, and it is only polite to give your name in return when names have been given,” stated the little bear.

    The little blue cub’s lip started to tremble a bit and he looked down, rather shamefaced. “Um, know ma’am, you are correct my name isn’t iceberg. Most people call me Rhino because I’m blue and they say I’m tough.”

    “Very good, Rhino,” replied Lady Bear, “now, how would you like to join us on the beach for lunch and some games?”

    “Well, I would, but you see, I’m trying to be an iceberg, and iceberg’s don’t move,” said Rhino plaintively. “If I give up now, I would be quitting, and I don’t want to be a quitter.”

    “Well, since we are near the tropics, and icebergs don’t come into these waters, I don’t see how you can be an iceberg. Maybe, you could be a sandberg instead, and a sandberg could be on the beach as easily as on this lonely sandbar,” reasoned Lady Bear.

    “That’s a great idea!” enthused Rhino, and they all happily returned to the beach.

    The ate lunch and for the rest of the afternoon played a variety of games. They played three on three volleyball, and tossed a frisbie around. The boys played with a football out in the surf, and everyone generally had a wonderful time.

    As the afternoon wore on and evening approached, other beach goers started to arrive, and a baseball game was started. Luckily, Sebastian never traveled without his glove, and had brought several others along as well. Sebastian, Purple Monkey, Rhino and Cassie all went over to join a game, while Lavender and Lady Bear sat on the sidelines to cheer.

    The game was a very good game. Sebastian, with his long neck and large body made a great short stop. Purple Monkey’s acrobatic abilities made him an unbelievable outfielder and Cassie had full command of her fastball, her curveball, and all her off speed stuff. Surprisingly though, it was the little blue bear cub that completely stole the show. At second base, he was a force to be reckoned with. He filled the gap like no second baseman ever had, and with the help of Sebastian turned some truly amazing double plays. At bat he was a natural, he hit to left, to right, and dead away center. He was an RBI machine, and could even steal bases with the best of them!

    All in all, it was a wonderful game. As the players left the field the stars were beginning to be shine and the fireflies were becoming visible.

    The friends quickly packed their belongings back on to Sebastian and got ready to go home. Before leaving, however, they made sure to ask Rhino where he lived, and were happily surprised to find his abode was not far from their own. He was planning on staying at the beach for a few more days however, so he refused their offer of a flight back home.

    “I had a very nice time, and hope that we can all play baseball again,” said Rhino.

    Lady Bear just smiled at him, “Rhino, I’m sure there will be many more games, but I have to tell you, I will never forget the day I first saw Rhino the Sandberg playing second base!”

    And with that Sebastian took off and faded against the night sky.

    —

  • The Wisdom of Dragons

    The Nest

    Lady, Lavender and Sebastian were enjoying another glorious morning in the beautiful meadow in which their home tree was located.

    Sebastian was now almost a full year old and approaching his full size. He no longer comfortably fit within the tree, but had built a beautiful nest in the crown of their tree.

    The nest was not a twiggy, pokey nest. Nor was it a muddy, mucky nest. It was a dragon’s nest, and that means comfort.

    Sebastian had constructed the nest initally out of fire hardened mud bricks. He had placed these in a pleasing arrangement that provided plenty of room for the young dragon. Over this was placed a layer of clay, gathered from the banks of the nearby river. Layered over all of this was a beautiful yellow metal that Sebastian found strangely appealing.

    Sebastian had found this metal in a nearby mountain. It had sparkled inticingly from within some rocks. Sebastian had crushed the rocks and then used his fiery breath (now quite potent) to liquify it. Once in liquid form, it coated things quite nicely.

    Once this was done, Sebastian was very pleased with his beautiful creation. Soon however, he became convinced that the shiny medal would be even prettier with some sparkly stones.

    Cactus and the Sparklies

    He had heard of sparkly stones being found in the river as it left the mountains, so he decided to fly up and take a look. The flight to the river’s egress from the mountains took the better part of a morning, but Sebastian didn’t mind. The air was cool, the sky was blue and the fragrant smells of apple blossoms filled the air. The ground far below was a riot of colors, mainly rich browns and verdant greens, but the river provided a cerulean ribbon through the landscape.

    When he arrived he found an old hedgehog sitting next to the river fly fishing. He didn’t want to frighten the small creature as Lady and Lavender had imparted to him the importance of kindness and good manners to all his forest dwelling neighbors.

    As he contemplated how he should best approach the ancient mammal, the hog called back over his shoulder, “If you’ve come to fish, fish. I’ve you’ve come to eat me, you can try, but these days I wouldn’t make much more than a mouthful of gristle and sinew, and I warn you, my spikes still have some starch left in ’em. If you’re here for something else, do it quietly so you don’t scare the fish.”

    Sebastian, a bit taken aback by the small animal, didn’t quite now how to respond.

    “Well, yes sir, I will. I mean, um, I’m not here to eat you, nor am I here to fish, but I will try to be as quiet as possible so I don’t scare the trout,” he finally stated as politely as he could.

    “I’m glad you’re not here to try to eat me. Truth be told, I’m gettin’ a might arthritic and rollin’ into a ball isn’t as easy as it use t’be.”

    Sebastian pondered this statement for a moment, trying to figure out a way to check for sparkly stones in the stream bed without scaring the fish. As he was a smart young dragon, it didn’t take him long before he realized that there was really no way to do this.

    “Sir, I, um, am a bit curious. Do you know if there might be any sparkly stones in the bottom of this river?”

    “Well of course there are ya ninny! Why d’ya think they call this place Shiny Rock River?” snapped the old hedgehog. He stopped the rhythmic flipping of his line and reeled it in. He turned toward Sebastian and opened the creel hanging from his shoulder. He turned it over and dumped out sapphires, rubies, emeralds and diamonds. Sebastian eyes got larger and rounder. These were exactly what he was looking for!

    The old hedgehog was watching Sebastian with a glint in his eye. After a few minutes, he said “I’ve heard dragon’s like a bit of the flash. I’ll tell you what, you help me with the fish, and I’ll give you the sparklies there in front of you.”

    Sebastian was thrilled with the suggestion. “Sir, you have yourself a deal! What type of help do you need with the fish?”

    “First of all, my name’s not sir, it’s Cactus. If you can’t remember that we might as well quit now and save ourselves the aggravation.”

    “I think I can remember that,” said Sebastian. “So what kind of help can I provide Cactus?”

    “What kind of help can you provide? Were you born stupid or just raised by a she-bear? I want you to dive in the river and haul me out some fish boy!”

    “How many trout can you get on a license, Cactus?” asked Sebastian innocently.

    “You can catch 5 on a license,” replied the surly old creature.

    “Well, how many do you still need, Cactus?”

    “5.”

    “Oh, um, I guess the fishing isn’t very good today,” said Sebastian.

    Cactus gave Sebastian a withering glare that only age and experience can give to youth.

    “That’s why they call it ‘fishing’ and not ‘catching’ you dillweed,” snapped Cactus.

    Sebastian decided silence was the better part of valor at this point and casually snaked his long neck out over the river. Faster than thought, his head struck into the pool, creating a blur of motion. In a matter of no more than two seconds, a pile of six large trout lay on the ground at Cactus’s feet. Sebastian looked over at Cactus, ready for Cactus to make good on his end of the bargain, to find Cactus staring at him, mouth agape, and spines strangely drooping.

    “Oh, I’m sorry,” said Sebastian, “Did you mean you wanted those prepared for you as well?” Almost as fast as the fishing had been, Sebastian’s talons drew a thin line down the underneath side of each fish, removed the offal, wrapped them in a large leaf, coated the mixture with mud and laid them in a neat pile. He then placed three large flat rocks atop one another and heated them to an orange glow with his fiery breath. Placing the leaf wrapped fish parcels among the rocks, he looked back over at Cactus.

    “I’m sorry I had no herbs or spices to prepare them with, but being as fresh as they were, the should still turn out to be quite tasty,” the young dragon said. “Now if you don’t mind, how many of those pretty stones are you willing to part with?”

    Cactus quietly, and quite slowly, handed over the entire creel to Sebastian. Sebastian, eye’s glowing, completely missed the shudder the ancient hog evidenced as the dragon hooked one long talon under the creel’s strap.

    “Well, thank you. Thank you very much. I am glad we were able to come to such an accommodating solution,” finished the dragon without ever taking his eyes off the creel.

    “Yessir, yessir, I am sure glad I was able to help you! I can see you are an inteljent dragon and nothing like a dillweed at all!” stammered Cactus.

    Sebastian said thanks once more and began the flight back to his nest, leaving a much relieved Cactus staring a might cautiously at the fish wraps beginning to steam on the still glowing rocks.

    A Rose is a Rose, is a…. not always…

    Once Sebastian returned to his nest, he quickly and efficiently placed a number of the stones in strategic spots within the nest. After he finished, he looked at the stones he still had left, and began to wonder what he should do with them. Being a kind hearted and generous dragon, it should come as no surprise that before long he had decided to create presents for his loving mothers.

    He chose a large green stone for Lady Bear, thinking, “Lady always looks so nice in forest colors.” He created a heavy chain out of the shiny yellow metal, and to hold the stone he created a setting that looked like a dragon’s fist, with the talons wrapping neatly around the faceted stone.

    For Lavender, he chose a pretty pale blue stone, rationalizing that it was the closest of his stones in resemblance to her namesake. He found another shiny metal, this one more white in hue. He thought it would look very pretty in contrast to the stone. Rather than a necklace, he decided to craft something a bit different. He fashioned a tiny rose steam and leaves out of the shiny silvery metal, and then he cut the largest of the blue stones into a tiny rosebud with his adamantium hard talons. The bud was adhered to the stem through the simple process of molding the heated metal around the lower portion of the bud.

    That night as Sebastian drifted off to sleep, he dreamed dragonish dreams where little bears were filled with delight and gratitude at the lavish presents bestowed upon them by their beneficent and loving son.

    The Gifting

    The next morning, Sebastian awoke planning to put into action the series of events that would make the nights dream a reality. He joyously went down to breakfast, stuck his head through the dining room window, and found the sweet little bears all ready enjoying their morning repast.

    “Good morning Sebastian!” the two bears chorused.

    “Good morning gentle mother, good morning wise mother,” replied Sebastian. Both bears beamed whenever he reverted to his original names for them.

    “This morning, I have a surprise for you!” shrilled Sebastian in their heads. Although Sebastian was most careful these days not to startle strangers with this type of communication, it was still easier for him than trying to form words with a split tongue and a mouth full of fangs, and since the bears didn’t mind, he often communicated with them in this way.

    And with this he presented the two bears with the products of his labors, and he waited to see their delight and hear there praise!

    The two little bears looked in wonder at the creations placed before them.

    “Where did you get these stones from?” questioned Lady Bear.

    “Wow Sebastian, these are quite unique,” stated Lavender.

    Sebastian, while he could tell the little bears were impressed and pleased, was a little disheartened for he had been expecting a more effusive display.

    After he had answered there questions, Sebastian had flown up to his nest and morosely thought about what had happened. Not only had the bears not understood why he had created the individual gifts for each of them, they had traded!

    Searching for Answers

    Now to be fair to the bears, they hadn’t realized that either of the presents had been intended for either one of them, and so trading didn’t seem to be out of line. Besides, the two little friends shared absolutely everything, so this really wasn’t an issue as far as they were concerned.

    Even his shiny nest wasn’t able to help Sebastian break out of his melancholy, so he decided to take flight and see where his thoughts would take him. As he flew he thought that maybe his dragonish nature just made it impossible for him to understand bears, which in turn made him more melancholy due to the fact that he loved the little creatures so much.

    Without quite realizing it, Sebastian had flown up the river to its mountain egress. There far below was Cactus fly fishing from the bank. Sebastian decided to go place his queries before the little creature, for although he was no bear, at least he was a mammal.

    “Hello there Cactus!” Sebastian said as he lightly touched down on a large boulder in the middle of the river.

    Cactus, who, truth be told, had fervently hoped he would never meet the slightly terrifying young drake again, was a bit more polite this time around.

    “Good morning young dragon,” replied Cactus. “Were you perhaps, needin’ some more of those sparklin’ rocks you seemed to be so fond of?”

    “No. No thank you,” replied Sebastian with a sigh. “I still have more than I need.”

    Now, considering a dragon’s love of treasure and tendency to horde, this acknowledgement startled the hedgehog to no little extent. Cactus began to wonder if the dragon had decided a mouth full of gristle sounded interesting after all.

    “Well, is there, uh, something else I can do for you?” asked Cactus, quite bravely.

    “Well, let me ask you Cactus, why did my mothers not like their gifts?” asked Sebastian, and then proceeded to tell Cactus the entire story.

    “Hmm… well that is indeed a good question. Did this here Lady’s necklace match the rest of her jewelry?” queried the little hedgehog as Sebastian drew his oration to an end.

    Sebastian thought about it, and realized that he had never seen Lady Bear wear any jewelry whatsoever!

    “And, I’m curious, did the rose you made for Lavender fit in with the rest of her roses?”

    Again, Sebastian was stunned when he realized that Lavender had never been seen with a rose!

    “Umm… thank you Cactus, I think you’ve solved the riddle!” exclaimed Sebastian as he launched himself into the sky.

    The Wisdom of Dragons

    Upon reaching home, Sebastian immediately started crafting again. He worked through the night and through much of the next day. As evening approached, his work completed, he flew down to the meadow to be with Lady and Lavender.

    As the rose of dusk filled the western sky, and the cool evening breezes cooled them all from the afternoons heat, Sebastian presented the two bears with the latest of his creations.

    First he approached Lady Bear and gave her a long narrow wooden box.

    “For you, Wise Mother, I have fashioned a clarinet from the darkest ebony I could find, and I placed the silver filigree around the bell and keys in a pattern unique to dragons. In the language of the ancient, it states, “I love you, Wise Mother.”

    Sebastian then turned to Lavender and gave her a small parcel.

    “And for you Gentle Mother, I have created these simple dancing slippers from my own scales. They should be light, comfortable, and never wear out. I have embroidered them with golden thread, again in the language of the ancient, and it similarly states, “I love you, Gentle Mother.”

    At first, Sebastian was worried that he had failed again, for neither bear said a word, or even looked at him. Both continued to stare into the boxes he had given them, and then almost as if directed from an unheard cue, they both carefully set the boxes aside, began bawling like little cubs and through themselves at him.

    After a time, the tears subsided and they eagerly returned to their gifts. They proudly showed each detail to the other and soon began using there new presents.

    Lady played and Lavender danced late into the night. The moon shown and laughter accompanied all the songs. The faerie folk soon joined in and the meadow was a source of music and mirth long past the time it had normally gone quiet.

    Eventually, as all creatures must, Lady, Lavender and Sebastian needed their sleep and retired to their beds.

    As Sebastian lay in his nest, he could hear the bears talking about their gifts and how much they loved the “little” dragon whose heart had grown so large.

    —

  • Let’s go swimming, or how Lavender learned to fly!

    [This is the second part of a (hopefully) continuing saga. The first part (though not necessarily necessary) can be found here at “Dada, tell me a story!” You can also find an original alternate universe piece at the wonderful Emily of New Moon‘s Blog. Hope you enjoy!]

    Good morning

    “Cuckoo”

    “Mwah!” replied Lady Bear as she pulled the covers over her head and turned away from the irritating noise.

    “Cuckoo”

    “Please, no more! Stop! I’ll get up!” she declared as she snuggled deeper under her down duvet.

    “Cuckoo”

    At this point Lady Bear sat up and blearily rubbed her eyes. She lowered her small fists and glowered at Sebastian, who’s long serpentine neck was casually stretched across the bed until his snout was almost directly in front of Lady Bear’s nose.

    “Cuckoo,” he snorted again, with a little belch of sulfery smoke.

    “You know, Sebastian, it was Lavender that explained the annoying contraption referred to as a cuckoo clock to you. Why don’t you wake HER daily with a good morning “Cuckoo”?

    Sebastian was now a dragon of almost a year old. He was now almost the size of a riding pony and weighed nearly as much.

    Stories of dragons having hollow bones in order to help them remain airborne had turned out to be rubbish. Dragons, being a creature of magic, flew in spite of, not according to, the laws of physics.

    His baritone “cuckoos” were daily getting a little deeper, and Lady Bear was sure it wouldn’t be long before he would be chortling in the lower bass clef register.

    “I would, little mother, but she slaps my nose and shouts “snooze!” I find it more enjoyable to watch you wake.”

    Lady Bear had to remind herself that although the dragon was not quite so little anymore, he was still a child. He was a good boy and she did indeed love him with all of her wee bear heart.

    After breakfast, Lady Bear and Sebastian decided to go for a nice dip at the swimming hole that was just around the bend of the river from their snug home. Lavender didn’t feel like getting wet that morning, so she decided she would go up the river and see if there were any faeries in the faerie meadow instead.

    Of flight and faeries

    The faerie meadow had obviously gotten it’s name due to the fact that there were usually faeries of one sort or another playing in the meadow. Lavender and Lady always loved going and watching the faeries, but Sebastian tended to scare the little ones badly so he found it pertinent to stay away.

    As Lavender walked in the cool mud beside the river, she hummed a happy little bear song and was contemplating asking any faeries she met if they could teach her how to fly. Lavender was greatly looking forward to the time when Sebastian would have gained enough control over his own abilities that he would be able to sore among the treetops and possibly even reach the clouds! That would be so nice! (and of course, he would NEVER turn her down if she were to ask to ride on his back.

    Lavender had always dreamed of flying, and upon waking from each dream, she felt more and more like she was missing out and she desperately wanted to change this fact.

    As she walked and thought and daydreamed, she enjoyed the feeling of the cool mud squishing up between the pads on her paws. The sent of lavender, honeysuckle and lilac was in the air and the morning just promised excitement. She was having a beautiful morning. She was so lost in her thoughts in fact, that she almost didn’t notice the little blue faerie sitting in the middle of the river as she approached the meadow.

    The blue faerie

    The little blue faerie looked sad and a mite distraught. Lavender approached the little creature and politely stated, “Excuse me, but it seems like you are maybe a bit discompoopulated. Is there anything I can do to help?”

    Well, the beautiful little blue face looked up at Lavender, with a bit of condescension if truth be told. “By discompoopulated, I assume you mean discombobulated. And no, I am not discombobulated, I am suffering. I am suffering due to the fact that I have a large fish scale stuck at the joint where my wing touches my back, and it is hampering my flight.”

    Lavender was a good hearted little creature, and rather than take offense at being corrected, endeavored she would remember the new word for future occasions. “Although, the seem like the same word to me,” she thought.

    Lavender asked the blue faerie to turn around and examined the joint in question. There, wedged into the joint, was indeed a large fish scale. The scale was luminescent and contained the colors of the rainbow. Lavender carefully removed the offending scale.

    “Do you mind if I keep it? It is very beautiful,” asked the little bear.

    “Do with it what you will,” replied the little pixie.

    “In return, I would like to do something for you. However, I will NOT turn you into a “real boy” so please refrain from asking,” stated the faerie.

    “A real boy? Why in the world would I want to be a real boy? I am a bear, and a girl bear at that!” replied Lavender.

    “Be that as it may, I hear that request much too often, and will not grant it, however, if you have no wish to be a real boy, then the matter is moot.”

    “Cow noises aside, what I really would like to do, is learn how to fly!” exclaimed the little lavender bear.

    “I am a dryad. I deal with water magic. However, I can grant you the gift of flight for a short measure of time, if you stay near the river. If this is acceptable, I will proceed.”

    “Oh, that is most acceptable Dry!” squealed Lavender as she bounced from foot to foot.

    “Dry? I am not dry, can’t you see the way the beads of water pearl in a beautiful manner on my wings and smock?” asked the faerie.

    “Well you said your name was Dryad,” stated Lavender. “I think Dry is much prettier.”

    “My name is NOT dryad. I AM a dryad. A water nymph. An elemental of moisture. The queen of the river!”

    “Well you should DRY up!” thought the little bear with a hidden chuckle.

    “My name is Cassandra de Netherlandeneraderactorialian, Daughter of Neshian and Lavethiar, First of all water nymphs and Princess of the Ki!” stated the dryad, while standing as tall as her diminutive stature would allow and striking a pose with hand placed on her hips, wings unfurled and eyes focused on the horizon.

    “Hi Cassie, my name is Lavender,” said Lavender as she help out one slightly grubby little paw. “You know, you shouldn’t stand there with your mouth hanging open like that, people might think you are a bit, well um, simple,” concluded Lavender in a whisper.

    After a moment, the dryad’s mouth snapped shut. She struck her pose once more and tried again. “My NAME is Cassandra de Netherlandener….”

    “Yes, yes, Cassie, I got it, beautiful name really. So, um when do I learn how to fly?”

    The little nymph decided to take a more direct approach. “I would prefer you not to call me “Cassie” if you please.”

    “No problem! I’ll call you Cass, or maybe just “C”. Yes! That is an excellent name!” cried Lavender. “Now, em, eh, the flying?”

    “Well then, I guess “Cassie” will do quite well after all. And yes, let’s get on to the flying.”

    Cassie could tell that Lavender was a good hearted bear so decided not to take umbridge at the funny little creatures nature.

    Of dance and flight

    Cassie maneuvered herself to the center of the river and began to dance. Her dance was the dance of sun rippling in the water, of spring essence rolling over river stones, of children’s laughter and ancients tears. Lavender watched enthralled as a small water spout lifted Cassie in the air. Cassie danced with the pillar of water as if it were the most natural partner in the world. And for her it probably was. As Lavender sat enthralled, Cassie spun and twirled, dipped and soared.

    And then she stopped.

    Cassie looked over at Lavender and couldn’t help herself. “You know, you shouldn’t stand there with your mouth open like that. People might think you are simple.”

    Lavender shook her head and felt like she had just come out of a dream. “Cassie, that was so beautiful! I enjoyed it ever so much! That dance was the most amazing thing I’ve ever seen! Please, forget about my flying request. You have given me much more than I gave you.”

    Cassie chuckled a deep throated chuckle. “Look down, sweet bear.”

    Lavender looked down and gave a little squeal for she was at least 20 feet above the river! She immediately started doing what looked like jumping jacks in the air.

    Cassie lifted one eyebrow. “What on earth are you doing?”

    “I’m trying to fly! I don’t want to just float!” she replied.

    Cassie smiled. “I am a dryad. A water faerie. Don’t flap your arms like an albatross. You don’t have wings. SWIM through the air!

    And Lavender swam. She tentatively started with an air doggie paddle. When that seemed to work, she switched first to a breaststroke, then the freestyle. Soon she was backstroking and sidestroking and having a grand old time!

    She and Cassie spent the rest of the day playing above the river. Lavender was euphoric. Throughout the day, Cassie and Lavender became fast friends over the course of the day, and as evening came on, Lavender promised Cassie she would return soon and would bring Lady Bear and Sebastian with her.

    As Lavender walked through the door, Lady and Sebastian turned to her. “So, did you have a nice day?”

    “Oh Lady, I had the most bestest day ever!”

    “Really? How nice! What did you do?”

    “You’ll never believe it, but I went swimming after all!”

    —

  • Dada, tell me a story

    A Beginning

    The Walk

    Once upon a time, there were two teddy bears that lived in a large and beautiful forest. Lavender Bear was known as such because of her beautiful lavender hair. Lady Bear had got her name because she was such a little lady. Her skin was covered in music and her life was a dance filled with song.

    One day, Lady Bear and Lavender Bear went for a walk in the woods that made up their home. They were talking, as friends often do.

    “What do you want to do today?” Lavender Bear asked?

    “I want to go to the magic glade where Faerie gather and watch them dance in the full moon light!” replied Lady Bear.

    “Well, that’s fine wants it gets dark, but since the sun has barely come up, it will be quite a while until the moon is in the sky again. What do you want to do now?’ Lavender asked, emphasizing the last word with what could almost be considered a whine.

    “Well, I am enjoying our walk. Let us go down to the honey tree and see if the bees will share with us this morning. Maybe they will have gotten over that silly Pooh creature stuffing himself in their front door.”

    This sounded good to Lavender as well, so they crossed the stream and took the path that would bring them alongside the honey tree.

    Now, of truth were to be told, Lady wasn’t worried about the honey. In fact, she didn’t really care for honey. It was too sweet and sticky, and often got on her fine skin and was difficult to get off. However, she also didn’t want to see Lavender get into one of her fine pouts this early in the morning and thought it was best to direct her energies into an activity the Lady knew Lavender would enjoy. And Lavender did enjoy her honey.

    “Besides,” thought Lady, “it is indeed a beautiful day for a walk, and the trail beside the stream down to the honey tree is such a pleasant walk.”

    Indeed it was. The two friends walked through fields of the lavender fully in bloom, which made Lavender giggle and be silly. Next they walked through a clearing with lilacs that Lady thought were the most beautiful, best smelling, bushes in existence. Truth be told, they both were having a fine morning of it.

    The Finding

    As they rounded a corner of the path, both bears came to a stop in open mouthed amazement. For there directly in their path was a beautiful pale blue egg. It was a large egg too. Lavender thought it was big enough for a moose to come out of. Lady patiently explained that meese did not come from eggs. But maybe it was big enough for an ostrich. Or maybe a condor. Or possibly, (she said with a shutter) a double wattled cassowary.

    This thought made Lavender a bit nervous, for any of those birds could make a quick supper of a little bear, and – as everyone knew – cassowaries were just plain mean. Lady explained to Lavender, quite patiently if she did say so herself, that although Lavender was quite right in that an adult of any of those species would be extremely dangerous to the little bears, that what came out of that egg would be quite to small and harmless to hurt them for quite some time.

    “Well then,” said Lavender, “what should we do about it? Maybe the parents will come back soon and then we’ll be in for it.”

    Lady thought about it for a moment. “Why don’t we hide back in those trees. We can climb into the middle and as they’re a nice type of spruce, we shall be quite hidden. Then we can watch for the parents without being seen. If the parents don’t come back for it, maybe we could take it home with us. It is quite pretty you know.”

    Lavender could easily see Lady’s point and at the thought of being ensconced in the fragrant bower of the spruce bows, readily agreed.

    So the two little bears climbed up into one of the larger trees and waited. It wasn’t long before the music of the wind whistling through the branches and the sweet spruce scent soothed Lavender’s nerves and began to have a soporific effect on both of the little bears. As they drifted off to sleep, neither of them noticed the large shadow that circled the glade twice and then shot off for the hills.

    The Taking

    Later in the morning, as the bears awoke from their nap, they quietly talked in the branches of the large spruce, as they nibbled the fragrant little berries.

    Lady suggested that they keep watch until the sun was directly overhead, and then if the parents hadn’t returned, they take the egg home with them. Lavender thought that, while the taking sounded fine, she didn’t want to be on the trail with a pilfered egg that early in the day. Lady could see the wisdom in this counsel, so they decided that they would wait until the first gray of dusk came over the forest. Of course, this would mean Lady would miss her Faerie dance, but in this instance, that was readily acceptable. Besides, the tree was so comfortable, and the two friends so amiable, that the day quickly passed and soon it was time to put their plan into action.

    Lady, being the braver (and easily the smarter) of the two, quietly approached the egg. She put her little paw upon the shell and noticed that, while it was neither hot nor cold, there definitely was a sense of life about it. In fact, when she removed her paw, it felt as if the world had become a little more mundane. Lady repeated the process several times and came to the conclusion that the egg did create a deeper field of sensations. She called Lavender over and asked her to try it.

    As Lavender placed her little paw on the egg, her eyes grew wide with wonder.

    “It’s like someone replaced my boring vanilla ice cream with some yummy peach!” gasped Lavender breathlessly. While Lady quite enjoyed her vanilla ice cream, she understood her friend’s meaning.

    “Well, as there doesn’t seem to be anybody worrying about this little guy, let’s take it home with us,” said Lady Bear.

    “Yes, let’s,” replied Lavender.

    Between the two of them, they really didn’t have much trouble carrying the large egg on the easy path back to their home.

    Their home resided in a large beech tree on the edge of a mountain meadow filled with heather. The lilac here were just starting to bloom and they both thought they had the nicest home in the forest.

    When they arrived back at their beech, they dug a shallow hole near the stream, lined it with comfy fragrant pine needles, layered some soft heather on top of that, and then gently placed the egg in its new bed. They covered the egg with a light linen blanket, for it was a tad cool that evening, and went to bed.

    The Hatching

    The next morning when the two little bears awoke, they immediately ran outside to check on the egg. The first thing they noticed was that the egg had rolled and moved until the blanket had been thrown off. The egg now also faced the opposite way in its little bed.

    “How strange,” said Lady Bear.

    “How scary,” thought Lavender Bear.

    Well, the two little bears decided they had best stay at the beech until the egg hatched. They took turns touching it and making little cooing noises at it.

    The two little bears were surprised, however, when that very afternoon, a thin crack showed up on the eggs sky blue shell. At first Lady thought Lavender might have been being too rough with it, but as the little egg began to rock and shimmy, she felt bad for her harsh thoughts.

    The hatching happened rather more quickly than either little bear had anticipated. Soon, before their astonished eyes stood a little dragon, about the size of a large kitten. He had shiny black skin (skin, NOT scales) with a little silver crest that ran the length of its body. It’s eyes were a beautiful sapphire and had an abundance of intelligence in them.

    The two little bears, while greatly amazed, were thrilled at this addition to their little family. They held the little dragon, cooed at him, stroked the little ridges over his eyes and stroked the soft (but long) throat under its chin.

    “I want to name her Heather!” declared Lavender.

    Before Lady could comment on this, the little dragon made a little snort of displeasure (at which a small stream of smoke exuded from it’s nostrils).

    “I am a drake, not a hen. It would be well for you to know that dragon’s choose their own names. I am … Sebastian,” both bears heard in their heads rather clearly.

    “Umm…. we’ve never met a dragon before Sebastian. We’re sorry if we’ve offended you,” said Lady

    “Think nothing of it wise little mother. You have been most generous in your care of me to this point, and I’m sure I will benefit greatly during my time with you. And if I had been a hen, I might very well have chosen Heather, or perhaps Viola, as a name gentle little mother,” Sebastian directed at Lavender.

    Both little bears beamed with joy at the dragon’s courteous and pleasant address. (And both secretly thought they had received the better name, but that is because he had captured each of their natures so precisely.)

    Sebastian grew from an infant into a strapping young lad. By the time he was 6 months old, he had grown from a small little dragon, to a fearless creature of 11 lbs. (And little did the bears know, hadn’t even hit his first growth spurt yet.) He was beginning to fly and could now vocalize as well as use his mind speech.

    As time passed the little bears and their dragon son had many adventures and wonderful experiences. Some were scary, and others were funny.

    Would you like to hear them?

    Then hear them you shall…. BUT, it will need to be another night because you need your sleep little one. Your mama bear and I love you.

    Goodnight my little dragon.

    —